The NSW Consumer Advisory Group - Mental Health Inc Website Forum
The aim of this forum is to provide a space for people to discuss and share their experiences of the mental health system in NSW, and for these discussions to be used to inform the work of NSW CAG.
How to use the NSW CAG forum
To participate in the forum, you will first need to register by creating a username and password. To do this, go to http://www.nswcag.org.au/ and click on the ‘forum' option on the left hand side of the home page, or run your cursor over the ‘Get involved' tab in the top centre of the website, and select ‘forum' from the pop-down menu.
Registering as a new user
Once on the NSW CAG forum page, if you are a first time user of the forum and would like to participate in online discussions, you will need to register by clicking on ‘register'.
After you have clicked on the ‘register button', you will be taken to the following screen:
The next steps are:
- Select a username. We recommend that you do not use your real name so that your participation can remain anonymous.
- Select a password. This needs to be at least 8 characters (letters) long. You can use numbers in the password if you like.
- Re-type the verification code provided (see picture above). If you are having problems with the verification code, please remember that the code will change each time that you enter the code incorrectly. If you continue to have problems with the code, try clicking on ‘listen to the letters' (make sure that your speakers are turned on) or ‘request another image'.
- Read the terms and conditions of the forum. If you agree to the terms, click ‘I agree' and then ‘register'. You will not be able to click on ‘Register' until the ‘I agree' box has been ticked (see below).
Once you have clicked ‘Register', your account needs to be approved by NSW CAG before you can begin to use the forum. You will be provided with the following message:
It may take up to three days for your registration to be approved, and you will be notified via email when your registration has been approved. Once you receive this email, you need to activate your account by clicking on the link provided in the email (see below, line highlighted in blue).
In the meantime, you are still able to read the other comments which have been made by other people on the forum by clicking on ‘home' in the forum page, and then one of the broad categories, for example ‘Recovery' or ‘Have your say about the mental health system'.
Please note: If you do not wish to register on the forum, you can still read comments made by other people by clicking on the forum categories. To do this, click on ‘home' in the forum page, select a category (e.g. ‘Recovery' or ‘Have your say about the mental health system'), and click on the individual topics that have been created by others.
How to login to the forum
Once you have received an email from NSW CAG which approves your registration, you can begin to participate in the forum. From the forum homepage, you will be provided with the login box (see below), and you will need to enter your user name and password.
Posting comments on the forum
There are two ways that you can post your comments on the forum. You can either create a new topic which you feel has not yet been discussed on the forum, or you can post a comment to a topic which has already been started by someone else.
Creating a new topic
If you have something to say that no one else has raised on the forum, you can create a new topic for discussion. To do this,
1. Click on the ‘home' icon on the forum page
2. Enter a forum category (e.g. ‘Have your say about the mental health system' or ‘Recovery')
3. Click on ‘new topic' above the discussion board (see below). This icon will only appear if you have logged in as a user.
4. Select a subject heading. For example, if you want to talk about ‘stigma in the community', type a brief description in the subject heading, followed by your comment in the box provided (see below).
5. Once you have finished writing your message click ‘post' (see below).
If you have a number of issues which you would like to discuss which are not related (for example accommodation and treatment), we encourage you to make an individual topic for each issue. This makes it easier for other people to respond to individual topics.
Replying to existing topics
You can respond to the comments made by other people on the forum. To do this:
1. Click on the individual topics which have been created by other users.
2. Click on ‘reply' which is located on the upper right hand of the screen. If you do not see the ‘reply' option, you may not be logged in as a user.
3. Enter your comment in the box provided and click ‘Post' to send your comment to the forum (see below).
How to logout
At the end of your session on the forum, make sure that you click the ‘logout' icon in the middle of the screen, particularly if you are accessing the internet from a public computer. This ensures that you are no longer logged in as a user on the forum when others use the computer after you.
Problems using the forum
If you are having any other problems that have not been addressed by this guide, please contact NSW CAG by email info@nswcag.org.au or phone (02) 9332 0200.
Enjoy the forum!